


The Moonlight Witch

by laikaspeaks



Category: Little Witch Academia
Genre: Alternate Universe - Medieval, Diakko, Dianakko, F/F, Pre-Canon, Pre-Series, Reincarnation, i've read too much Xena AU fic to think that changing their names is a good idea, they're keeping the same names
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-08
Updated: 2018-03-29
Packaged: 2018-10-29 15:05:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,435
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10856463
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/laikaspeaks/pseuds/laikaspeaks
Summary: Diana Cavendish has always lived her life according to the wishes of her family and her king. In a time where witches struggle for their very survival she knows no equal on any battlefield... until she clashes with the mysterious, charismatic rebel Atsuko Kagari.





	1. by the power of the moon

To the east the moon weighed heavy on the shoulders of the mountains, so large and bright that it washed the little town below in silver and blue. All was brilliant light, all was threadbare shadow. Neat rows of whitewashed houses with slate roofs dominated the district where she began, but it wasn’t long before her downward path lead her to the lower regions of the city, where coarse wood and narrow cobblestone streets dominated the architecture. 

The full moon resonated with the leylines under her feet, making power bubble to the surface like a spring. Diana’s very skin fairly hummed. According to legend, her namesake was one of the first true witches, and the moon was her symbol and source of power. On nights like this Diana could believe it. She probably looked like a moon spirit herself in this blue dress. 

Strictly speaking she didn’t need to patrol here in the heart of the city, but between the full moon’s siren call and restless energy, she couldn’t rest.

Diana’s fingers skimmed the length of a low stone wall, feeling the dormant spirits in time-smoothed stone. Almost everything here brimmed with life, electric and vibrant in her mind’s eye. It soothed her troubled mind to feel them close even though they slept so deeply. Privately she was honest enough to admit that she was lonely.

Hannah and Barbara, usually her constant companions, didn’t have time for their lady when the full moon sang through their veins. She only hoped they would be awake enough to perform the purification rites tomorrow. Her lips twitched despite herself. Diana was also honest enough to admit she would cover for them both regardless. The life of a witch was often joyless duty. She was happy they found some small measure of peace in each other.

Speaking of duty.

Just a few feet in front of Diana, a figure vaulted over a fence with a quiet thump, then began creeping down the lane. They couldn’t be very old based on the slim frame. Diana sighed inwardly. So much for escaping her troubles for a moment. She swore she spent more nights shooing teenagers out of the streets than she ever did fighting enemy witches. “You!”

The girl jumped in surprise and spun to meet Diana, holding up her hands in a defensive posture. Diana could only make out a lanky frame that didn’t quite fill out the dark trousers and loose white shirt. It was a strange fashion choice for a girl in this day and age.“Y-yeah? I mean. Yeah? What is it?”

Diana softened a little. She was odd but at least the girl wasn’t rude in her fear.

“Didn’t you hear the proclamation this morning? There’s an… event in the town square this night. You’re over the age of twelve, I’m sure? You’re required to attend.”

“Yeah. I’ll just… I’ll just go. To the thing.” The girl shuffled in place, already backing away. Diana wasn’t truly surprised - there was a reason she could walk alone at night in any part of the city without fear. The citizens that held her in such contempt weren’t so brave when she had them alone.

“The square is that way.” Diana reminded her gently, gesturing the way she came. “Take care, the streets aren’t safe tonight.”

“...I will.” The girl hurried to scurry past, ducking her head with anxious submission.

Suddenly that prickling feeling crystallized into a single insight. Diana could  _ feel  _ the girl as she drew near. She could feel the subtle ripple of power, responding to the leylines like a lesser reflection of the moon above. She was  _ a witch _ , and not one of Diana’s sisters. Diana jumped back with a shout dying in her throat.

The girl froze, but the surprise faded quickly. She lifted her chin with a grin, a flash of amber eyes and a too-sharp grin in the moonlight. Then she straightened fully, and for the first time Diana realized that the other girl was a good head taller. “Aww, you caught me.”

That wasn’t the voice of someone who was afraid.

Diana’s hand twitched toward the wand at her belt, but the girl was faster. Her wand was already in her hand: a short, brutish staff of metal inset with round blue gems. Diana stared at it uncomprehending. She only rarely came across someone faster and there was certainly no caster of that skill in this city. She raised her hands slowly, frustration blooming in her chest. “Who are you?”

“You can call me Akko!” Those golden eyes were at odds with her bright words. They were sharp enough to cut like a blade. “And I already know you, Diana.”

She hefted the staff in her hand like club.

Then the screaming started in the distance, and the girl’s head shot up to follow the sound. The blue night sky gave way to red, thick black smoke curling over the rooftops bringing with it the acrid taste in the back of Diana’s throat. Her stomach churned. This part only got harder year by year. Yet she couldn’t look away, couldn’t forget, couldn’t deny that this was the fruits of her labors.

“No.”

Diana’s gaze shot to the other woman, stunned at the raw desperation in her voice. That entire lean frame bristled with indignation, the strange staff dropped to her side. She didn’t even look at Diana when she reached for her own wand. A foolish mistake.

“Murowa!” Diana spat, flinging the spell blindly as she rolled behind a wagon for cover. Stone splintered and rained down from above from the magic she’d sunk into the spell. Silence. Diana immediately started turning this way and that to scan for her opponent, cursing her own arrogance. Just because a rogue witch never breached Appleton it didn’t mean they never would.

“I haven’t got time for you today, Cavendish.” The voice whispered against her ear, tickling against the back of her neck. Akko dodged a thrown elbow with a grin, casually twirling her staff like a baton. “Arae Aryrha!”

Strange, pale roots burst from the earth and wound around Diana’s legs and arms, dragging and pinning her to the ground so firmly she could taste dirt. She cried out as a swift kick to her hand sent her wand skittering across the pavement. Pain shot up her arm, and her pride was only just enough to bite back a sob. A short but painfully long pause. Then a surprisingly gentle hand settled on the top of her head, so briefly that later she would be certain she imagined it. “Goodbye.”

If she twisted her head against the roots winding around her head, she could just make out this girl - Akko - running down the middle of the street. There were some kinds of magic the human mind wasn’t equipped to perceive. One moment the girl hung mid-leap, and the next a lanky wolf bounded down the darkened street.

* * *

“They got away. A single girl beat back all our guards, immobilized a  _ supposedly _ undefeatable witch, and left with every prisoner from the execution.”

Diana’s folded hands tightened at his tone, ignoring the ache of newly healed bone. She didn’t dare look away from the young man pacing back of forth in front of the fireplace. His silk jacket was still covered in soot, his hair mussed from his hand running through it again and again. She didn’t think he knew it was a nervous habit of his, but it wasn’t apparent except when he was under tremendous pressure.

She was one of the few who ever saw him this way though she couldn’t say that it was a privilege. Diana chose to remain silent, waiting for him to process the information so that she could actually act on it.

“You _ will _ find them,” he said finally. Behind his voice was the force of an order, the only magic that would ever pass the man’s lips. Even that was only because of an oath her parents made to his, before either of them were old enough to know what such things meant. Her family would live freely despite their unclean magic, and she would serve the crown.

“You will find all of them, and bring them back here. Alive.” His back was turned to her, but she could see the way his hands curled into the back of his favorite chair. She wasn’t sure if it was anger or fear that made him tremble. “They won’t escape the fire a second time.”

She inclined her head slightly, accepting the command with the grace expected of her station. In some parts of the valley there were trees that grew bent from a wind that blew always in one direction. That oath was her wind. It pushed her down, forced her to bow until her very bones grew into the shape. “When have I ever failed you, my lord?”

Diana. That was what Hanbridge family named her when she was promised to them. Not for the witch, but after the huntress. Even she knew what the witches called her - Lord Hanbridge’s merciless silver hound, the destroyer of covens. Traitor. 


	2. that which is sacred

“Owww.” Akko whined, hands curling at the edge of the stump she was using as a bench. Sucy hissed something about her self control, her intelligence, and the stars she was born under, all the while yanking her back into reach when she tried to escape. Akko stilled her squirming only when the other girl grabbed her ear and gave it a sharp tug. “O - ow! OW! Hey, stop!”

“Hold still, stubborn pup.”

“But -”

“You already owe me a week, do you want to make it two?”

That eager, toothy smile made Akko wilt with a whimper, already imagining what horrible experiments Sucy had in store. The last salve she tried dyed Akko’s hands purple up to the wrist for a month. The tincture before that had her and Lotte sprouting mushrooms all over their bodies - she still had nightmares about that one.

To distract herself from  _ that _ cheerful reminder, she watched curiously as Sucy picked up a threaded needle and started sewing together one of the nastier cuts in Akko’s upper arm. The healer muttered incantations under her breath as she worked, words of power that invoked healing and wholeness.

Akko didn’t have a gift for the healing arts, but she was fascinated by the process. Which was part of the reason she continued to tolerate Sucy’s experiments. She let out an exhale of wonder - her skin was pulling together behind the thread, the pale pink of new scars.

After a while even that lost its interest, and Akko found herself scanning the small clearing. There was a tent large enough for the three of them tucked up in the lee of a hill, with a gentle slope leading down to a shallow creek. The sacred trees were large and lush, but not quite enough to muffle the sounds from the rest of the small village that sprouted up here in the past few months.

Here the leylines overlapped, charging the air itself with power. This was the sacred grove of Luna Nova, last and greatest school of witches.

“It’s your fault for running into the city on your own, Akko.” Lotte said over her shoulder, busily removing fresh laundry from the line. It was a strange image to Akko, after the chaos of the past weeks. She still wasn’t used to how this coven bounced back so quickly from disaster.

At least Lotte sounded like she had some pity left in her soul. Unlike  _ someone _ . She flinched as Sucy tied off her first set of stitches. The thread dissolved in a flash of light, burning like a coal briefly pressed to her skin. A quiet growl from the healer made her still obediently.

“You could have died out there.” Lotte continued without looking at either of them.

Akko’s jaw clenched, even though the words were gentle. She didn’t understand why they refused to even try to see it her way. “What did you want me to do? They were going to burn people alive.”

“They’re their own coven’s problem.” Sucy said, pausing in her muttering so that she could cut the length of thread with her teeth.

“Yeah, well I don’t think it’s right!” Akko tried to cross her arms, but got smacked upside the head by the impatient healer. “Owwwie.”

They were quiet while Lotte finished hanging the laundry. Occasionally she hummed under her breath, making the spirits stir around them. They didn’t wake, not fully, this place was too old. But Akko liked to think Lotte made them smile in their sleep. Literally anything was an acceptable distraction from the heat building in her chest - something entirely too similar to anger.

It was only after Lotte had neatly folded each piece of dry laundry and placed it in her basket that she spoke again. “We know you want to help everyone, but it’s just not possible.”

Akko thought of the dozen witches she dragged stumbling through a leyline portal. Old women that had to lean on her for support, young mothers who wept for their children until their bodies shook… even down to timid little girls that clung to her shirt. Like she could protect them, like she was strong.

“Don’t either of you care at all?” She hated how small her voice sounded. It was strange how the two of them made her feel like a child even though they were the same age.

“Of course we do.” Lotte ran her hands over the folded clothes again, as if to brush out an invisible wrinkle. “But you can’t blame us, Akko. If we get caught, or worse, lead them back here…our families live here. Akko, you understand right?”

Akko understood very well. She wasn’t stupid, she knew what she meant even if Lotte didn’t want to say it out loud. It settled heavy and cloying in her chest. She refused to meet Lotte’s eyes, focusing stubbornly on the patch of open sky above.

“You don’t really have as much to lose as the rest of us.” Sucy observed drily.

Akko was so relieved to hear it out in the open she almost stopped being angry. Almost. Lotte peeked at her a few times as she passed back and forth between the flat stone she used to wash clothes and the line. Akko didn’t even have it in her to attempt a smile to reassure her.

“There, done.” Sucy smiled with satisfaction, once she was finally done shmearing every possible concoction over Akko’s few magical wounds. “Get out of here, hero.”

“Thanks, Sucy.” She muttered, before picking a direction and walking in it. Akko was old enough not to storm off in a huff, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t _ feeling _ it.

Her feet followed the paths out of habit. Some were dirt, worn shallowly where the witches passed frequently since moving to the grove. Others were crumbling cobble, softened with grasses and mosses, even the occasional sapling. The only remains of what was once a sturdy road.

“ _ Atusko Kagiri! _ ”

Akko bounced in place and turned to meet her oncoming adversary with a smile. “What can I do for you, Anne?”

Anne Finnelan had decided on the very first day that Akko was a thorn in her side. She didn’t seem liable to change her tune any time soon, and Akko doubted she was there to thank her for keeping yet another coven from being wiped out completely.

“Don’t presume to speak to me so familiarly, Kagiri. I think it’s time that we -”

There was a pulse like a heartbeat around Akko’s neck, nearly making her jump out of her skin. “Can we do this later? I’ll be right back.”

Akko ignored Finnelan calling after her, crashing through the underbrush  until she reached one of her favorite places to go and think. No matter how much Sucy implied otherwise, she did do that on occasion.

She slipped through a cleft in the cliffs, emerging in a shallow cave about twice the length of her own body. The tiny chamber filled to the brim with giant ferns, which made Akko feel safe when she flopped down on a large, flat rock and they closed over her head. She could see the sun dancing on the leaves, threads of light sneaking through the cracked roof.

Akko tugged the necklace out of her shirt, excitedly peering at a crystal orb the size of a child’s marble. She yelped with excitement and nearly dropped it twice - there was a blue glow stirring in those depths, like the moon viewed from under deep water. She pressed it to her lips, breathing over the surface, “ _ Cor silex loquor _ .”

The crystal expanded in her hand until it was the size of an apple, and with it the speaker on the other end emerged from the blue mist swirling inside.

“Akko.”  Chariot smiled up at her from the surface of the crystal ball, and that smile was familiar even if everything else was not. It was surreal to see her with long hair dyed dark, dressed demurely in a blouse and skirt. Like a peasant girl from any number of towns. Even her body language was different, more closed off and quiet. “You’re safe. When I heard that you were seen in Appleton, I was worried. It sounds like you went in without backup.”

Akko’s chest felt tight. The rumors must have been truly worrying for Chariot to risk contacting her despite the danger. It was… just really hard. It was hard to walk past when someone was hurting and there was something she could do about it. Chariot would never scold her for risking her life - and honestly wouldn’t have a leg to stand on - but the unsubtle tension in Chariot’s shoulders was punishment enough.

“Did you find her?” Akko asked instead of answering. She couldn’t resist asking, and they couldn’t risk long conversations.

Chariot sat back with a sigh, and Akko caught a flash of mountains in the background. Akko committed the detail to memory, honestly not sure what she wanted to do with such information. Chariot’s instructions to stay at Luna Nova had been clear, as if Akko had any less reason to be searching for the missing third member of their trio.

“No, I didn’t.” Chariot said finally, looking at something far beyond. Her hands bunched in her dress. “The trail is cold, Akko, there hasn’t been any news for months. But…”

“But you’re not coming back for me yet.” She hoped her voice wasn’t as flat as it felt, but knowing herself it absolutely was.

Akko drew her knees to her chest, the orb propped between them so that she was almost nose-to-nose with the polished crystal. She was a few months shy of twenty, but at this point she just wanted to bury her face in her Chariot’s shoulder and hide from the world for a while.

“Hey, mom?” Akko had to force the words past her suddenly clumsy tongue.

Chariot started, her eyes widening behind the glasses she didn’t need. “Yes?”

“I couldn’t save them all.”

Her mom’s - Chariot’s - eyes were steady on her through the crystal. There flash of her old determination on her features, the expression that once had Akko convinced that Chariot could pluck the stars themselves from the sky. Then it melted away like a memory.

“It’s hard,” Chariot agreed, soft and helpless. A shudder ran up Akko’s spine, escaping through her mouth as a muffled sob. Chariot cupped her hands around the crystal ball, nearly blocking herself out of the image. “I’m sorry, Akko. I’m - I’m sorry. I know you tried.”

Chariot waited, as she always did, until the sobbing subsided. This woman who was like her mother never could soothe Akko’s stormy disposition, but she was always there in the end. Waiting for the dark skies to pass, with no judgement or scorn.

Akko loved her for that. It was what gave her strength when she looked up again, eyes meeting once more. If Chariot couldn’t fight any longer, it was Akko’s duty to do it in her place - that was what it meant to be her daughter.

“I’ll do it, Chariot. No matter what I’ll keep my promise and protect everyone!”

“I know you will.” Chariot’s smile was a pale shadow of her old self, but it was the world to Akko. “I believe in you.”

With power like that on her side Akko could move mountains.


	3. birch, willow, yew

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Diana deals with the aftermath of a witch burning, and tries to find out about the girl she met that night.

“Your... activities are showing.” Diana noted mildly, gesturing to Hannah’s reflection in the floor length mirror. Dark bruises trailed down her throat and over her bare shoulders. They were alone in Diana's bedroom - tiny nook of a room, though it was richly decorated in velvet, silk, and dark woods - so it was unlikely anyone would see. Even so, all it would take was one nosy servant with a loose tongue. 

“So what? What’s Hanbridge going to do, try me as a witch?” She finished unbuttoning the back of Diana’s dress and flopped back on a chaise lounge, sprawling as far as she could and allowing one leg to dangle over the side, kicking restlessly. All she wore was the braies and chest band that she would normally wear under her clothes, but she made no attempt to hide either.

“Hannah, hush!” Barbara hissed, flushed with embarrassment.

The playfully wicked expression Hannah shot Barbara was only emphasized by the blue tattoos on her face. They flowed down to her shoulders, looping over her chest, ribs and hips and down to the soles of her feet. Diana translated the runes running down her shoulder blades only once. What she took as Hannah’s chains - the curse that bound her as Diana was bound - was the embodiment of her family’s love. They were words of strength and healing, a shield inked into her skin.

Barbara lunged at Hannah with an annoyed sound, but the other girl scrambled away with a laugh. 

Diana pretended not to notice the two girls quietly squabbling. It was hard though: Hannah making circuits of the room to remain out of reach of a brightly blushing Barbara, refusing to allow her to hide the marks with makeup or magic. Diana wouldn’t think Barbara would be that concerned, considering they were carefully placed for visibility. Even Hannah’s highest collar wouldn’t be enough to preserve her modesty.

The little fight paused only long enough for Barbara to button Diana into her dress, though judging from her quiet cursing at Hannah it wasn’t quite a ceasefire.

She couldn’t help but smile. Diana closed her eyes and listened to them move around the room, their quiet argument melting into whispered endearments.

Diana dared to look and immediately regretted it - she jerked her eyes away, but it wasn’t fast enough to prevent the image from being seared into her brain. She lowered herself slowly into her chair and let her head drop to the table. Truly she loved her friends as if they were her sisters, which was why she wished they weren’t nearly so comfortable in her company. If someone told her steam was coming out of her ears, she wouldn’t be surprised.

_Hannah kneeling before a seated Barbara, the other woman’s skirts pushed up just high enough for Hannah to press a kiss to the inside of her bare knee._

She didn’t need to see to know the scars Hannah was tracing.

Diana remembered all too clearly laboring over Barbara’s legs, casting spells only half-understood. Flesh burst forth from charred bones, almost aggressively whole with dense, knotted scar tissue. In the years that followed, she essentially had to rework the muscles and bone that were warped in her first attempt. They were only girls, only children. Diana didn't know the healing spells that should have been her birthright.

She was tugged back to the present by a current of magic at the edge of her perception, gathering around Hannah and Barbara. A spell of illusion, a spell for concealing secrets. If Diana looked, the burns on Barbara’s body wouldn’t be visible or even perceptible to the touch.

“There you go.” Hannah took Barbara's hand and pressed a lingering kiss to her knuckles before rising and going back to finishing her own preparations. Their fates were sealed the moment Hannah walked through fire to save Barbara. The two grew like saplings entwined at the roots.

Once they finally turned their attentions to getting ready it didn't take long. 

Hannah offered Barbara her arm playfully, and the other girl accepted it with a solemn nod that almost immediately broke down into giggles. They were Diana’s left and right hands, and in all things were a matched pair. Down to the silvery thread worked into the green tunic Hannah wore over trousers - the same pattern was embroidered at the hem of Barbara’s rust-red dress.

Diana pulled the hood of her cloak over her head, knowing her girls didn’t need instruction to do the same. The ritual played out the same way after every execution. Ever since Diana’s mother died, this duty passed to her along with the weight of service to their king.

The broad avenue leading down from the palace proper was lined with shops. Normally at this time of day the street would be a whirlwind of activity. There would be street vendors hawking roasted meats and sweet cakes, fabrics from distant lands, fish and wild game. On a day like this it was silent as a grave… but Diana could feel a many eyes peering at her, beating down with the weight of a summer sun.

The street opened up into the town square. Here the shop windows were boarded and closed, the grass and trees blasted yellow as if by a hot, dry wind. In the center of that wide swath of death were the stakes. Branchless tree trunks towered against the sky in their neat rows, bark so blackened by fire that they couldn’t burn any longer. Once trees that some long-lost coven made sacred with their prayers and their magic. A mockery of a witch’s grove.

Diana took a deep breath, closing her eyes and letting her other senses expand.

The leylines here lay deep, but Diana could feel it twisting in on itself beneath her feet, howling like a wounded animal. Most witches couldn’t cast without some kind of channel: a stave or a wand or even a stick stripped from a tree. But in great pain and fear even the least of witches could reach deep into her own soul and rip out a curse that would make Hanbridge’s brave knights tremble like children. With time they would sink their roots into the ground and unfurl their shadowy branches. Death was wrought here, and so death was the only fruit this ground would bear.

She exhaled slowly and opened her eyes. Unless they averted fate. “Are you ready, girls?”

“Always am, Diana.”

“Y- yeah, I’m ready.”

Diana pulled her wand from her sleeve, a length of willow branch stripped of its bark and polished by long use. Her mother’s, or so she was told.

Hannah and Barbara stood behind her at either side, already beginning the chant that would lend her their strength. She closed her eyes again, and started speaking the ritual words. Her magic reached out to Hannah and Barbara, and on the stable ground of their joint power she built her spell.

Blue light gathered around the three of them and channeled down the length of Diana’s arm to the tip of her wand, gathering into a ball of light the size of both of Diana’s fists put together. The magic that flowed through her burned, so that when she breathed the air vaporized in her lungs.

When she released it with a cry it rippled in every direction like a wave, and the shadows in her mind’s eye were seared away. So was she, like mist under the sun.

The next moment she was aware of herself, she was being shaken roughly, Hannah’s voice sharp in her ear. “Diana! Are you stupid?”

Diana opened her eyes, peering up at her friends sheepishly. Hannah had an arm wrapped tight around her waist, keeping her from crumpling to the ground.

“Sorry.” Diana managed dutifully. That only earned her a glare from the other woman, silent and flushed with anger.

Barbara’s face was pale, sweat beading on her forehead. She probably couldn’t wait to leave this place, but she had Diana’s arm slung over her shoulder. “You shouldn’t try to take the brunt of it by yourself!”

“Sorry.” Diana said again, feeling more than hearing the words. She was quickly fading, an exhaustion too heavy for thought settling on her shoulders. “Thank you... for your help, girls.”

It was only right that she carry more than her fair share. It was her fault that they were here.

 

* * *

She was scolded.

Diana sighed, going over her list of supplies one more time. It was difficult to get much planning done without leaving the room, but she suspected that Hannah and Barbara really would make good on their threats this time. Normally Diana would be inclined to ignore them anyway, but the backlash of the spell was stronger than she expected. Her limbs were heavy with fatigue, and her head swam with exhaustion. But she wasn’t ready to sleep yet, not with the events of the last few days still fresh on her mind.

Her eyes drifted to the mirror.

The mirror propped in the corner had to be old as the castle itself. It was a little longer than she was tall, about about as wide as her arms outstretched, and the ornately carved frame remained stubbornly dull no matter how many coats of beeswax Diana worked into the wood. The glass though - that a smooth flawless panel backed with silver. In all the time she owned it, there was never sign of tarnishing. As if it moved outside time itself.

Diana stood before it for a long moment, meeting her reflection’s own eyes and clearly reading the misgivings there. If no one else she could be honest with herself. She took a deep breath and released it slowly as she pulled her wand from her belt and gently tapped the tip against the mirror.

“Aerome Raltore.”  The surface of the mirror rippled like the surface of a pond disturbed by something moving just beneath, the clear reflection of Diana’s room vanishing under a quickly approaching fog.

A pair of bright eyes swam into focus in the depths of the fog, gleaming green like the eyes of some great predator in the dark. “You called, my girl?”

“I saw something strange last night when the witches escaped. None of my books shed any light on the matter.” Diana shifted uneasily under those eyes. Croix was the only true witch - the only true teacher - Diana had ever known. But sometimes Croix looked at Diana like a pocket watch to be taken apart.

“So you decided to ask _me_? I’ve been trapped in this mirror for many years, as you well know.”

“A decade at most, surely you haven’t forgotten all magic in that time?”

“And,” Croix drew closer to the surface of the mirror, her breath fogging the glass as if she were still flesh, “what would you do for me if I gave you this information?”

Diana resisted the urge to roll her eyes. “I’ve already promised to free you. I’ve even refrained from asking why you were imprisoned. What more could I do for you now?

Croix smiled, “We’ll just credit it for a future favor, shall we?”

Diana didn’t hesitate. It was like those roots were winding around her again, crushing her into the dirt. It wasn’t the defeat that stung. It was the casual dismissal. The girl - Akko - could have killed Diana easily.. Why didn’t she?

“Agreed.” It wasn’t as if she hadn’t done small favors for Croix before, in exchange for the knowledge she so craved. “Last night… the reason the witches I captured got away was because of a girl. She had a strange wand, and turned into a red wolf to escape.”

“A red wolf, you say?” She was a bared-teeth smile, a movement of hands that faded into mist mid-gesture. “And she changed by her own will?”

“There was none of the pain associated with a true wolf curse.”

She was whole again, for a moment. A woman in her late twenties with her hair gone prematurely grey, rich green eyes and a open arrogance to her smile. There were crease lines between her brows, which Diana expected the first time she saw them, but she also had laugh lines at the corners of her eyes and around her mouth. Diana couldn’t imagine the woman wearing anything but a smirk.

“Last night was a full moon, yes? It’s a time of great power for any witch, but more so for those that bind their souls to the moon and stars in exchange for power.”

Diana nodded mutely, her eyes trained on the mirror. Her weariness wasn’t enough to defeat the curiosity burning in her mind.

“They can take forms that soar through the air, swim through the water, or walk the earth.” In the smoke shapes formed and faded to follow her words - first a bird, then a salmon, and last of all a wolf. Her fingers swept over the smoke-wolf’s back almost tenderly, but it scattered under her fingers as if by a sudden wind. “They’re the masters of changing shape, even among witches. That is the house du Nord.”

Diana made note of the name, but it was far less information than she was hoping. “Can you tell me anything more specific?”

She was silent for so long that Diana almost wondered if Croix had cut off the spell on her own again. The woman had an infuriating taste for the dramatic.

“You said you saw a wolf?” Croix said slowly. “If so... it could only be Chariot Du Nord. She’s the only heir, but I could see her being so reckless.”

“Chariot Du Nord?” Diana shook her head, crossing her arms thoughtfully. “The girl claimed her name was ‘Akko’.”

The silence reigned again.

“It sounds to me like you encountered a very unusual witch.” Maybe it was Diana’s imagination, but she thought she saw Croix’s expression soften. Diana wanted to know. The thirst for knowledge had always driven her, merciless as any magical compulsion.

“What do you mean? How is she unusual?”

Croix’s eyes snapped back into focus, turning on Diana with an intensity that could strip the flesh from her bones. “Didn’t you say you owed me a favor, girl?”

Diana scowled, watching Croix wearily. That was the only response she was going to get? It didn’t seem like a good trade, but in this Croix held all the power. She knew Diana couldn’t resist. “What did you have in mind, Croix?”

“Go to bed. Get some sleep, foolish girl.”

Croix was gone. Diana could only stare at the empty mirror. It wasn’t the half-answers and dodged questions that made Croix a mystery. It was this - the unexpected kindness hidden behind a sharp-edged smile.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Check out this [awesome](http://ieatedanimation.tumblr.com/post/160448300518/diana-cavendish-has-always-lived-her-life) [art](http://ieatedanimation.tumblr.com/post/160955341908/akko-from-the-moonlight-witch-by-pageoflore-i) by ieatedanimation!! So cool right? Thanks a lot.


	4. the burning ones

The light rain dappled Akko’s fur like dew but didn’t soak down to her skin, for which she was immensely thankful. This was what she knew best: following the flow of tiny streams through the undergrowth, slipping through the dappled half-light, through the mist clinging to the dips of hills. She never was a quiet girl, but as a wolf… all the noise inside her went still and calm, every part of her focused on pure sensation.

Her earliest memories were of Chariot slipping from one form to the next like an otter dipping through the reeds. Easy as breathing. These woods were different, but somehow it felt like if she found the right path she would find herself in another place and time.

In her mind’s eye her mother’s hands smoothed through her hair, gentle and patient as only she could be. _“This isn’t just a spell, Akko. If you master it you’ll never need a wand to change your shape.”_

_“My mother taught me and I’ll teach you.” She gave her a playful squeeze, blowing into Akko’s neck until she laughed. There was a long moment of play wrestling before Chariot was finally “defeated” and fell backward, cradling Akko to her chest._

_“...This is how witches choose our daughters. I want you to remember that no matter what. We chose you.”_

The memory got cut short by a rustle in the grass, the musky scent of rodent cutting through the clean smell of rain and earth. Akko took off like a shot, letting out a short bark of excitement. This at least couldn’t be lost: her mother’s gift, the wild joy of blood in her teeth.

* * *

 

Amanda met her at the edge of the clearing, fresh back from another kind of hunt if the leather armor was any indication. The blue protection spells scrawled on her face just made her grin more alarming. “Akko, there you are! Cons was looking for you.”

Akko trotted past with a jaunty shake of her head that made the hare flop this way and that, earning a disgusted noise from the redhead. She giggled internally, making her way deeper into camp. It was as simple as following the smell of cooking food. Easy enough with hunger gnawing at her insides.

Jasminka bustled around the cooking fire, a handful of assistants jumping to her deceptively pleasant commands. The plump girl with the silver-blonde braids was by far one of the kindest people Akko ever met, but in the clearing where the coven kept its kitchen she reigned as unquestioned ruler. Akko could privately admit she was kind of scary.

She spat the hare out into Jasminka’s open palm, and accepted an affectionate hand ruffling her ears with a wag of her tail.

“Bleh,” Akko groaned as she melted back into human form and registered the taste of fur and blood on her tongue, “fur tastes so grooooss.”

“You didn’t have to carry it in your mouth,” Amanda pointed out, sidling into the clearing with her hands in her pockets, “you could have changed back.”

“Of course I could! I just… forgot, that’s all.”

“That’s majorly weird, Kagari, catching rabbits like a real wolf and all.” Amanda threw an arm over Akko’s shoulder and gave her a peck on the cheek, ignoring jealousy burning in the eyes of half the kitchen girls. “It’s kinda cute but you way overdo it.”

Akko scowled and turned to face Amanda fully, then started at the arms that got between them and waved in front of her face. Constanze’s brows were knitted together with irritation. Who knew how long she had been trying to get Akko’s attention. Amanda withdrew with an unrepentant smile. “Sorry, Cons. You wanted to show Akko what you’ve been working on, right?”

Akko had no idea how anyone could be jealous of her and Amanda when the fighter’s tough exterior practically _melted_ for Jasminka and Constanze. If even Akko noticed it had to be obvious. Maybe at this point Amanda’s admirers accepted that they were all competing for second place.

Constanze wordlessly grabbed Amanda’s hand and tugged her along, gesturing for Akko to follow. They took a winding path through the tents to one of the few actual buildings in this area of Luna Nova, though it was mostly just a wooden roof supported by sturdy pillars. Almost all of it was Constanze's work, from the stone fire pit to the various tools hanging from the ceiling at head-knocking height for anyone but Constanze. 

Amanda didn’t look impressed, and Akko could see why. To the untrained eye it was painfully plain hardened leather, and some pieces were clearly salvaged from other sets. It was servicable, but Akko was enough of her mothers' daughter to be disappointed. Amanda didn't waste any time shoving her foot into her mouth.

“This is what you've been going on about? Looks like regular armor to m - ow!” Amanda hopped on one foot, clutching her injured shin. “What was that for?”

Constanze made a dismissive motion with her hands, her thick brows drawing together.

“Okay, so I _don’t_ understand what’s so special about it, but you didn’t have to kick me!”

Constanze made a gesture back that made Amanda redden. “What the _hell_ is that supposed to mean?”

“Akko. Can you… can you come with me for a minute?” Akko turned to find Lotte wringing her hands, her gentle face creased with conflict.

It sent a pang through Akko’s chest. Crying had always helped her feel better, and in retrospect her actions were… not good. Chariot always told her she should think before she acted - which was saying something, since the older woman wasn’t really much better.

She looked over her shoulder at Constanze and Amanada arguing - one shouting and the other signing furiously - and decided to take the third option. “Lead the way.”

Lotte drew her just far enough into the woods that Amanda’s shouting was a dull buzz, and the silence was so deep that when Lotte finally whirled to face her it made Akko jump.

“I’m sorry!”

“Lotte I - “

“Let me finish!” Lotte drew herself up to her full height, puffing up like an angry hen. It would have made Akko giggle if she weren’t afraid of getting pummeled.

“Akko, I wanted to go with you. I did.” She tugged Akko into a hug tight enough to make her huff. Her hugs were so tight, as if she could protect them both with this alone. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry I didn’t go with you. You came back hurt and it’s - it’s all my -”

Lotte broke off with a hiccup.

Once Akko stopped seeing stars she sighed, resting her cheek on top of Lotte’s head.  She was still tired and achy, but she needed the hug more than she needed uncrushed ribs. “I’m the one that feels like crying.”

Lotte slapped her shoulder.“I’m not crying!”

“Ow - I mean. Okay.” If there was one thing Akko learned as she got older, it was when to shut up.

Eventually Lotte’s tears trailed off, and she pulled back and straightened herself out, rubbing her eyes awkwardly behind her glasses.

“Lotte, can I ask…” Akko trailed off awkwardly.

She didn’t look up until she had herself composed again, though her voice was unusually hoarse when she finally spoke. “What did you want, Akko?”

“I need to get into the library.”

“The library?” Lotte’s eyebrows shot up, several expressions flitting across her face before she settled on incredulous, “Why?”

“It’s not that weird!”

“...It really is.” Lotte pursed her lips in thought, her red-rimmed eyes narrowing.

Akko did her best to look innocent, and it seemed to work because after a long moment the girl nodded decisively. She flipped a small needle out of her belt and pricked her finger without flinching. Magic rushed into the clearing like a wave and where her blood hit the ground twin saplings burst from the earth, growing until they were pale, sturdy trees with their branches twined together to form an arched gate.

Lotte ran a reverent hand over the wood, murmuring something under her breath that even Akko’s sharp ears couldn’t quite catch. A simple wooden door appeared between the trees before her eyes.

“Lets go.” Lotte said quietly.

The bookshelves soared overhead, disappearing beyond the pool of light without the faintest hint of ceiling. Many-colored spirits flitted between the stacks, casting an ever-shifting glow. Akko shivered. The chill of the flagstones seeped right through the thin soles of her boots, despite the warmth of the summer sun at her back. She hurried to follow Lotte.

No one would pin Akko as a lover of books - she would be the first to admit that. Even so, the first time she saw this place she was struck with awe, she’d never seen more books than the shabby grimoire that her parents shared. The library was bursting with books to the point some shelves overflowed into teetering stacks. Akko was half sure they must be held up with magic, because it certainly wasn’t gravity.

She let her fingers skim over the brass plates affixed to each shelf, sounding out names as she trailed Lotte deeper into the gloom. The names of great witch families. These books were worth more than her life… or so Lotte warned her, with a glare more stern than when Sucy tried to store one of her experiments in here.

She wasn’t sure what good it did to protect the books if the families themselves were gone. Not that she would dare say so to Lotte’s face. Even she wasn’t that stupid.

“Do you ever wonder what this place must have been like before all this?” Lotte murmured dreamily, lifting her lamp to illuminate a cluster of well-worn study tables. “They say that the ceiling used to shine with stars, and there were always kids from different covens in here learning. Maybe we would even have met a lot sooner, Akko!”

Thankfully they didn’t linger long. The thought was almost like a ghost breathing down her neck. Was it possible to have a ghost of things that never happened?

As they went deeper into the stacks the shelves became larger and more ornately carved, and the books far older, bound in strange fabrics or leathers, with symbols painted on the spines that glowed faintly as they passed. Lotte hefted her lamp higher and swept it back and forth, muttering to herself and fiddling with her glasses.

“Ah, here it is!” She pulled a book from one of the shelves, giving it a cursory once-over before she pushed it into Akko’s hands.

“But Akko,” she peered up at Akko though her glasses, pushing them nervously up the bridge of her nose. Her voice dropped, even though they were the only ones here, “I don’t understand why you need a book on breaking curses?”

Akko looked over Lotte’s shoulder to avoid her gaze, and her eyes lighted on the carvings on the bookshelf. They were almost indecipherable in the darkness, but after a moment the mess of images snapped into focus. Unicorns. Dozens of them carved into the dark wood, gold paint flaking away from swirling manes and tails that melted into carved waves.

The Cavendish girl’s spirit had burned so bright under her hand, despite the curse that clung to her sweet and cloying like the breath of a sick stag.

“It’s for Diana. I think I can save her, Lotte.”

Lotte stiffened. “Get out.” Her quiet voice made a shiver race up Akko’s spine.

The spirit in Lotte’s lantern whorled up around Lotte’s arm. Blue flame spread across her skin, and with each exhale smoke curled between her lips. She was shaking, fists clenched.

“Lotte, listen -”

Akko took one step forward and the spirit-fire around Lotte roared, licking up the shelves and over the books harmlessly, even though Akko could feel the heat from where she was standing.

“I said _get out_!”

The world twisted. Space itself warped around Akko for a brief moment, then _snapped_ back into place, throwing her violently off her feet. She turned over in the grass and heaved, distantly thankful she hadn’t eaten yet.

“It’s your fault for saying something like that, you know.”

Akko nearly jumped out of her skin, but relaxed slightly when she saw Sucy nearby. She was already sitting up, rubbing the back of her head with a grimace. She must have been in there too, and got thrown out when Lotte...

Akko buried her face in her hands and groaned. “I thought I’d have more time to explain myself.”

“Really?” Sucy muttered, her voice dry enough to start a drought. Her eyes were on the gate - which Akko noticed was now just two trees. The door was completely gone. “Cavendish has killed enough people by her own hand to fill a graveyard, not even counting all the people she’s caught for king-whoever to burn. Did you think Lotte was going to go along with you just like that?”

She got to her feet and brushed herself off, and Akko numbly followed suit.

“I… I just want to help. I have to protect everyone.” It sounded ridiculous even in her ears, but that just made her more stubborn. She would prove them wrong or die trying.

Sucy rolled her eyes. “You’re too simple, Akko.”

“You didn’t see what I saw!”

It came out too fiercely, making Sucy finally turn to look at her properly.

 _"No one_ sees what you see. That,” she gestured at the Claiomh Solais at Akko’s hip, “shows you secrets.” Sucy’s smile was all teeth, suddenly transparently crafty. “Why don’t you tell me what you saw, Akko? Think of it as a trade.”

“Wh -”

“You see things no one else can see, you think I’m not curious? Tell me what made the coven idiot try to come up with a plan.”

Akko crossed her arms, clenching her teeth against the rush of irritation. “I’m not going to tell you if you’re just gonna make fun of me.”

“Try me anyway.”

“She…” she struggled for the words, the ones that would make Sucy believe, “she’s got some kind of curse on her, something strong.”

Sucy started to open her mouth and Akko cut her off. “She didn’t do it to herself.”

Akko plowed onward before she lost her nerve. “Whenever I use the Claiomh Solais I don’t just feel magic, I can see it. Like, as a light or something. And that girl -”

Akko wrapped her arms around herself to ward off a shiver. If Akko had hated the traitor-witch she couldn’t remember it now. When she closed her eyes she could still see Diana’s spirit - the horror hit her all over again, evoking the same emotions as bleached bone and blackened flesh. “There’s no way she’s working with them willingly.”

Sucy was rarely serious, but now she searched Akko’s eyes with something dangerously close to pity. Her hand settled on Akko’s shoulder. “...You’re too soft, you idiot.”

Akko knocked Sucy’s hand away, wishing again that someone would take her seriously. "I’m not _stupid._ If we can get her away from the Hanbridges they’ll lose their advantage. Even if she didn’t side with us it could turn the tide.”

Whether she knew it or not Diana Cavendish was the key to their victory. Akko could feel it.


End file.
